WORK has begun to improve flood alleviation schemes on Teesside thanks to a massive investment from the government.

Homes and businesses in the Teesside area will be better protected from flooding as part of plans by the government and Environment Agency, with £37.6m invested in more than 150 schemes in 2021 and 2022.

The investment is part of plans outlining £5.2 billion of investment over the next six years across the country.

More than £860 million will be spent over the next year boosting design and construction of more than 1,000 schemes across England as part of the Environment Agency’s annual capital programme.

It is all part of the Flood and Coastal Erosion Investment Plan, which sets out how new flood and coastal schemes will better protect 336,000 properties by 2027, helping to avoid £32 billion in wider economic damages and reducing the national flood risk by up to 11 per cent.

This follows the Environment Agency’s successful delivery of the government’s previous £2.6 billion investment between 2015 and 2021, better protecting more than 314,000 homes.

Some key schemes being delivered on Teesside this year includes: The £4.8million Marton West Beck flood scheme which is currently in construction.

It will reduce the risk of flooding from the beck, sea and surface water to nearly 500 homes in central Middlesbrough.

During flooding the new scheme will hold flood water back in Marton West Beck and Albert Park, slowing the flow and reducing the impact downstream.

It includes an extended debris screen, new stone-clad flood walls, a new drainage system, the instalment of protective fencing, and several flood storage bunds.

At Stokesley, the £3.7million scheme currently under constructions will reduce the risk of flooding to more than 500 properties in the town, including a new flow control structure, which will automatically close and divert water away from the town during high levels on the River Leven.

Leila Huntington, Flood and Coastal Risk Manager for the Environment Agency in the North East said: “This is a record investment in the North East and we have a wide variety of projects right across the region in the pipeline to boost flood protection for communities and improve their resilience, as well as bring improvements for wildlife through enhanced habitat creation.”

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